27:32–34 After the prisoner had been condemned and scourged, it was common practice to make him carry the cross beam (patibulum) to the place of execution. The upright post remained in place like a mediaeval gallows. As the procession moved through the city (taking the longest route in order to serve as a warning to as many as possible), the prisoner carried around his neck a placard indicating his crime. When the cross beam with its victim had been hoisted in place and joined to the upright, the titulus was nailed over his head.

On the way to Golgotha (so called either because it resembled a skull [the word means the Place of the Skull] or because it was a place of execution) Jesus, weakened by the ordeal, apparently was unable to carry the cross beam without help. The soldiers compelled…